In a WLAN system such as 802.11, stations (STAs) within a basic service set (BSS) share the same frequency channel to communicate with each other. In an infrastructure-mode BSS, an access point (AP) relays traffic to and from a distribution system (DS). Many BSSs can be connected to the DS through their APs. Communication between APs and other nodes within a DS can be supported by any medium access control (MAC) scheme, such as IEEE 802.3 in the case where a wired infrastructure exists. If a wired infrastructure does not exist, communication between APs can also take place wirelessly. A set of APs communicating wirelessly constitutes a WDS.
For successful communication between two APs in a WDS, the sending AP must transmit a packet on the channel used by the receiving AP. Generally, APs may choose the channel, (i.e., WDS channel), from a plurality of available channels to communicate with other APs. Typically, the WDS channel is same as the BSS channel used by an AP to transmit and receive packets to and from STAs in its own BSS. In the prior art, the WDS channel is configured manually by a system administrator and the APs are not capable of dynamically changing the WDS channel autonomously.
However, the manual configuration and setup is cumbersome, error-prone and costly. In addition, the most suitable WDS channel for communication within the WDS changes dynamically on a short-term basis due to changes in interference and traffic conditions. It is not realistic to manually keep track of these changes and change the WDS channel.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a method and system for autonomously configuring the WDS channel while maintaining connectivity within the WDS.